Pure underground vibes from the Midwest: an interview with Rethink

2019. július 22. - FrozenDub

I had a nice chat with the boss of the Stance Audio none other than Rethink! Read the interview below.

Hey brother! How are you doing?!

Whats up man?! I’m doin’ well, I hope you are too.

Would you please briefly introduce yourself?

My name’s Will. I’m 23 years old currently living near Minneapolis. I go by Rethink and run Stance Audio.

You are from Midwestern United States. What’s the dubstep scene like there?

Overall, I think it’s pretty good considering how spread out everything is around here. Everyone supports people trying to push the sound and lots of people drive very far just for a few hours of good sound system music. It’s pure love though!

How do you feel about the dubstep/140 music scene in your area?

I don’t think I’m alone in saying that we are always hungry for more events. In Minneapolis most parties are very focused on mainstream bass, so we really don’t get enough of underground bass. Recently, the SubSequential series ended which has me absolutely gutted. I think they were really the only ones properly pushing sound system nights around here.

Is it hard to promote dubstep in your area?

I would say yes. I think a lot of people in America don’t really understand what dubstep is and the underlying meaning of the music. Most people when they hear that a dubstep night is happening would expect it to be very energetic with DJs yelling 1-2-3-JUMP, but that’s really not what it’s about. And when you try to show someone some good classic tunes, usually they don’t get it because you do need a good system to truly show what the sound is.

You runs the Stance Audio. Could you introduce the label?

Of course! Stance Audio was started in the late summer of 2016 with Strikt Depth. We always talked about doing something of the sort throughout school and finally decided there is no point in just talking about it when you can do it. Sadly, he’s no longer involved. But Stance Audio is meant to be an avenue for people who are pushing music forward while also respecting the roots. There’re so many amazing producers and djs that haven’t yet gotten their light and I hope that Stance Audio can help them in some way. Stance Audio is my way of trying to give back to the scene.

Many people say this is the new golden era of dubstep. What are your thoughts on that? Stance Audio has a very special old school flavour especially if the STANCEDUB series.

I don’t know if I can say that this is the golden era, because I hope it’ll keep getter better and better. But I am definitely very impressed with the current state of the sound. There are so many good tunes coming out all the time and so many good dubstep nights goin’ off. It really is a bit of a renaissance for the sound and the community.

How many STANCEDUB release do you plan in the future?

There’s a couple planned right now that we haven’t announced yet. But I plan that the STANCEDUB series will be goin’ for a long time. I know it’s not the most efficient way to get tunes on a plate for people to play, but I really do love the process of it. As you know, all of those are done completely by hand. Hand cut, hand labelled and stamped. I’m the guy packaging them and dropping them off at the post office. I think it’s a really nice way to do it. Owners of a STANCEDUB plate know that the record was held in the hands of people who really love the music and want it to grow.

When did you start listening to dubstep? What was the main thing that first got you into dubstep?

I actually stumbled across dubstep on complete accident. When I was about 13 years old I went to a car show with my dad and Scion was giving out CDs that had Rusko’s Pro Nails remix on it. I had never heard anything so wobbly and groovy. From there I just started digging in more and more.

When did you start djing? As I know you are a vinyl DJ.

I first started djing for myself in my room when I was like 14 or something. I begged my parents to get me a pair of cdjs and they were able to hook me up with some CDJ-100s from 1998. At that point I’d spend almost all my free time either producing or burning CDs to play with. I didn’t start using vinyl until 2017, but from the very first time I got a good beat match I knew that was how I wanted to spin tunes. There’s no feeling like it.

Do you think is important to keep the physical format alive?

Personally, I think it’s very important. Even if you are just buying records as a fan, there’s just something so special about it. Flipping through a crate of wax and pulling out one of your favourites, inspecting the label, pulling it out of the sleeve, placing it on the turntable and dropping that needle. Then waiting until the pops and crackles and hiss turn into the tune. It’s just a nice ritual man. It gives you some extra connection to the music that is lost with digital formats.

When did you start doing music production?

I’ve always been interested in music production. I think I got a hold of a cracked copy of FL Studio when I was about 12 or something and absolutely loved playing with it and making crappy beats. From then until now I’ve dabbled in trying to make all types of tunes but obviously 140 is home for me. I think it’s important for everyone to find some kind of medium for them to creatively express themselves.

What has been your most significant experience as a dj?

I would say getting invited to play at Driftmore last year. I vividly remember after my set walking away from the stage with my record bag and it was lightly sprinkling rain. All I could think of was just how lucky I was to be there. My bag of dubs brought me to a beautiful sound system in the middle of nowhere and allowed to meet so many amazing like-minded people. I can’t wait to go back this September.

Do you listen to any other genres besides dubstep?

Yes! Of course. Besides dubstep I love reggae, grime, drum and bass, conscious rap, and indie rock. I also really like any kind of worlds music from different cultures, it’s so pure. I feel like if I only listened to dubstep, it’d have a negative effect on my music as I try to draw inspiration from a lot of different musical sources.

Do you have any forthcoming releases? What is your plans for the future?

For myself, I have one forthcoming on the Intrepid Audio compilation dropping shortly. As for Stance Audio, I can’t give details for anything in the works right now, but I promise they are coming. For my plans for the future, I’m going to keep doing what I’ve been doing. Listen to good, promote good music, and try to make good music.

Could you please recommend us a few dj, producer, sound system crew from the Midwest?

There’s way too many to name. Off the top of my head Hoax, Snakeblood, Romy, Mistah, Smilodon, Grundy, BVDVPPLE are all people you should get to know if you don’t know them. I gotta shout out Allegro Audio as my favourite sound system crew for sure. The guys running it definitely know what’s up.

If somebody would go to Midwest could you recommend us bassheads any clubs, night bars we should visit?

Sadly, there’s really not any spots in my area that are consistently hosting good bass music. I would’ve said to make sure you catch a SubSequential night, but they are no more. Hopefully, that void gets filled soon.

Please recommend five tunes and a dj mix that should be essential listening for every human being – the sort that would leave your life incomplete if you’d never heard them.

Oh that’s probably the hardest question here.

Wookiefoot – You’re It

Burial – Archangel

Magic City Hippies – Four of a Kind

Allan Kingdom – The Ride

Protoje and Chronixx – Who Knows

Joker’s Essential Mix is def one of my favorite mixes of all time.